TESTS, TESTS, and MORE TESTS!!!!!


Hi all!
We were very busy on Friday taking several different tests. We won't always have our social studies tests on Friday, but it happened to be that way this week.

Reading Comprehension and Vocabulary Test: We will usually take the Reading Comprehension, Vocabulary and Grammar on the laptops in our room, but this past week, we took them paper and pencil. On these tests coming home on Monday, I have only put how many they missed. Some of the 2nd grade tests only have 10 or even less questions, so I don't want to put a percentage if they missed 2 out of 10 questions. **We will take a reading comprehension test each week. We will take a vocabulary test in addition to this on weeks 1 and 3 of our reading unit. We will take a grammar test in addition to the comprehension test on weeks 2 and 4 of the reading unit. The Reach for Reading units are each 4 weeks long. Sooooo, expect a breakdown like this for tests:

Week 1: Comprehension and Vocabulary
Week 2: Comprehension and Grammar
Week 3: Comprehension and Vocabulary
Week 4: Comprehension and Grammar

Please note that you can find all of the vocabulary words listed in students' green folders in the middle section.





Spelling Test and Dictation: We will take spelling tests once per week. Students will be tested on their 10 spelling words and their 8 high frequency words. Students will always bring home these words on Monday. When we take the spelling test, it will always be out of 18 points. Then, on the back, students are given a sentence that they have to write exactly how I say it. I use the words from their spelling list that week to make up a sentence. This sentence can vary in terms of how many points it is out of. Each word is worth a point, capitalization at the beginning is worth a point, and any punctuation needed is worth a point. This week, the sentence was worth 8 points. Other weeks it may be different depending on the number of words, capital letters, and punctuation marks in the sentence. 

Social Studies Test: This will have a total number they missed on the top, but there is actually 2 parts of the test. There are the comprehension questions, which usually have somewhere between 8 to 12 questions. Then there is a part on the last page that is called the "Show You Know" part. It is more of a writing and picture part of the test. This part is out of 5 points and there is a rubric on how it is scored at the bottom of the writing portion of the test. You will notice when the tests come home next week that we jumped from Unit 1 to Unit 13. A little crazy, but we are going to follow in the Social Studies book to follow the Units in our REACH for Reading program. (We will rotate through out the year between Social Studies and Science.)


Whew! That's a lot of info! So you might be thinking: "Thanks for the explanation, but now what?!?" Great question! Here is my suggestion to you...take some time to go through each test with your child. Talk to them about the problems they did well on, as well as the problems they missed. This reteaching that you can do with them at home will help them tremendously when we take our next tests. Ask them questions like the following:

What part did you feel like you knew the best?

What part was the hardest for you?

Did you really take your time on that part, or did you make a silly mistake? 

 Let's see if we can try it again and see if you can get it this time.
Did you read this story carefully? 

What should you do if you are not sure which answer to pick (for multiple choice questions). 

What will you do next time to help you get a better score?

When you take the time with your child to review their tests, it shows them a LOT of things. It shows them that their score is not just a number but rather a reflection of how well they understood the information. It shows them that YOU CARE about how they are doing at school. It shows them that you are on their side and want to help them improve. So, if you each could take even 10 minutes some time this week and talk with your child, I would be forever grateful! 

Remember, we are in this together! We share the same end goal, which is to help them reach their highest potential! Thanks!!

One of My Favorite quick activities:  Rocket Math!

Hello parents!
We started our math fact fluency program called Rocket Math a few weeks ago! I thought I would try to answer some questions you may have about Rocket Math, so hear it goes!

Q: What is Rocket Math?
A: Rocket Math is a fact fluency program with 4 levels: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Within each of those 4 levels are 26 sub-levels, called Level A-Level Z. The levels get harder as students pass into higher levels. Students get 1 minute of practice time to do the facts in their heads. Then, they have 1 minute to answer as many facts as possible.

Q: How often do you do Rocket Math?
A: We will be doing Rocket Math 2-3 times per week.

Q: What happens if my child passes the level they were on?
A: They will go onto the next level, which will be the next letter of the alphabet.

Q: What happens if my child does not pass the level?
A: If your child doesn't pass, they will stay on that level until they do pass. Please practice with your child at home if you are noticing they are not passing several times in a row.

Q: Why is my child passing but they are not completing all of the problems on the paper?
A: Your child has an individual goal based on how quickly they can write. The most they can complete is 40, but the kids have goals anywhere from 23 problems in a minute to 40 problems in a minute.

Q: What can I do to help my child at home?
A: Great question!! There are several things you can do!! First, if your child didn't pass their level, they will bring home their paper, and the top half of their paper will not have writing on it. We only write on the bottom half when we have our timings at school, so you can time your child at home using the top half of the paper. You can even send their paper back to school so I can see that they have practiced. Another great option is to have students use flashcards at home or even apps on their devices. There are some amazing apps out there that make fact practice WAY more fun!! Just go to the app store and type in "math fact practice."

Q: Why isn't my child starting at the same level that they ended their 1st grade year at?
A: I have assessed students using the Rocket Math criteria and have found the level that is appropriate for them at this time. MOST students regress in the area of fact fluency over the summer unless they practiced their math facts on a regular basis. So, it is very likely that your child is starting at a lower level than they ended their first grade year at.

Q: Why do you even do Rocket Math at all?
A: Fact fluency is something that comes in handy EVERY SINGLE DAY during math. Students need to know their facts quickly so that they can solve more difficult problems accurately and efficiently. Also, counting on your fingers might be okay when you are 7 or 8 years old, but as kids get older, that strategy is less acceptable.

I hope this helps explain a bit about Rocket Math. Do you have further questions about it? Please leave your question in the comments section below. It is likely that if you are wondering about something else that I have not addressed, there are probably others in the same boat! Soooo...ask away!! Thanks!

We had some exciting visitors today!  A group of 4th graders came down to our room to show us how they do a discussion called "Cross Text Connection".  It was really fun to see them do the discussion and the 2nd graders had some really good questions for them.  Next week we will be doing our own discussion on our own!!  Very exciting!  Stay tuned for pictures of our own group discussions next week!

Everyday should be not just about learning, but having a little bit of fun too!

Sorry about some of these photos sideways, but apparently my blog doesn't want to turn the photos up and down!  (I'm guessing this is a "User Error" and I will figure out before the next post!)

Anyway, Officer Schoeff here talking to our students about keeping safe!  He is such a funny guy!

I am trying to get into the groove of taking more and more pictures of the kids in their daily routine in addition to the special events that go on here at Carmel Elementary.  I would love for you to follow us on our blog as we learn, explore, share and grow in our class and blog!
Have a great weekend.  Remember to read a great book!
Mrs. Schwartz 

Some fun we've had the past couple of weeks in our 2nd grade class!

  Picture of some of the kids dancing at the Anti-Bullying Convocation from last week.

                      Look at these kiddos who enjoyed Country Day this week as one of our Spirit Days!

CHS parade day!   Very short parade, but fun to get out of the classroom and go see the High School kids!

Our class picture from the 2nd week of school!  Are they cute kids or what???